Food hygiene

You are helping to prepare food for others. By doing so you are responsible for preparing high quality food that will not induce health hazards.

Legal basis

§43 Law on the Prevention of Infection (Infektionsschutzgesetz)

Preliminary instruction by the German Health Authority
timeframe: 3 month before the instruction by your employer
follow-up instruction by your employer
timeframe: instruction should not be older than 2 years
	consider reasons for being suspended from working with food
	have your papers? with you

Microorganisms…

...are everywhere
...are neither "good" nor "bad"
...are part of our immunesystem
...facilitate resorption of nutrients
...are an intrinsic part of the foodchain
...can be the reason for a lot, sometimes very dangerous, illnesses

normal case: You are healthy and without any injuries → washing your hands is enough

The german Federal Centre for Health Education (BzGA) indicates 5 simple rules to effectively wash your hands:

1. Rinse your hands under running, clean water
2. Use soap between your fingers, fingertips, palms and the back of your hand
3. thorougly scrub your hands for at least 20-30 seconds
4. thorougly dry your hands with a clean (single use) towel

special case: injury → use a medical glove

hand hygiene in a kitchen

short, unpainted fingernails
use a brush
take of any jewlery that you are wearing on your hands and arms (rings, wristwatches, etc.)
thoroughly scrub your hands witch clean water and liquid soap
thoroughly dry your hands with single use towels

You have to wash your hands after...
...you have been outside of the kitche
...you took a break or smoked
...you coughed, sneezed, cleaned your nose/used a tissue
...every contact with raw food and packaging
...contact with unclean, critcal food (e.g. minced meat, eggs, etc.)

working with food

consistent hand hygiene
take of any jewelry that you are wearing on your hands and arms
wear clean clothes
use "protective" gear like aprons, hair nets and such
try to use cutlery to handle food if possible
If you have to cough/sneeze turn away from the food, cough/sneeze into the crook of your arm
DO NOT cough/sneeze into your hand
use a waterproof band-aid (please use bright colours) if you have an injury on your hands/arms

handling food

Rule 1: buy sensibly
	Carefully choose your food, cool it if necessary and bring it home as soon as possible
Rule 2: cleaning
	Clean hands, surfaces and cooking utensils regularly with a clean cloth
	Scrub floors with a lot of water and a brush
	try to use a dishwasher for cookware
Rule 3: separate
	avoid germ transmission
	Try to clean cutlery in the dishwasher
Rule 4: heat
	Always cook food until it is well-done
	(no 3-minute-eggs, no rare/english steak)
Rule 5: cooling
	Always cool or freeze persihable food. Measure and document!
Rule 6: washing, peeling and blanching
	To reduce germs on fruit and vegetables
Rule 7: Guard
	Keep insects, rodents and other animals away from food. Never store food on the floor.

reasons for being suspended from working in a kitchen Persons who suffer from one of the following diseases or show one of the following symptoms immediately have to suspend any work related to food processing, inform their supervisor/chef and consult a doctor.

severe infectious gastroenteritis (sudden diarrhea, nausea and fever)
typhoid or paratyphoid
infection with hepatitis A or E virus
infected wounds/rashes if they might get into contact with food

main symptoms for being suspended from working in a kitchen

diarrhea (-> 2x thin stool in one day)
high fever, headache, stomach pain or joint pains, constipation
yellowing of eyes and skin
reddened, weeping, swollen wounds or wounds with a smeary coating

sanitizers

kills germs but does not remove them
Hand-/Spraysanitizers: Only use them on dry hands/surfaces!
application area? (hands, wounds, surfaces, floor?)
correct dosage (surfaces, floor, cookware)
take the soaking time into account